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Oilers handle Flames

Feb 22, 2012 - 6:46 AM Calgary, AB (Sports Network) - Sam Gagner and Jordan Eberle scored and added two assists apiece, leading the Edmonton Oilers to a 6-1 victory over the Calgary Flames in this season's fifth installment of the Battle of Alberta at Scotiabank Saddledome.

Taylor Hall and Ryan Smyth contributed a goal and an assist each, while Ales Hemsky and Eric Belanger also scored for the Oilers, who snapped a three-game losing streak overall and a nine-game losing streak against Calgary. Devan Dubnyk made 21 saves in the victory.

Scott Hannan scored the only goal for the Flames, who failed to carry over momentum from a 1-0 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday. Miikka Kiprusoff was touched for five goals on 34 shots and Henrik Karlsson gave up one goal on eight shots in defeat.

"We were flat physically, mentally and emotionally," Flames head coach Brent Sutter said. "We just didn't have a push at all tonight."

Calgary opened the scoring at 9:12 of the first period after Hannan let a slap shot go from the point that got through traffic in front and past Dubnyk, but it was all Edmonton from that point on.

"Even though they got the first goal of the game, I thought we set the tempo right from the very first shift," Hall said.

The Oilers evened things up with just 1:12 to go in the first period when Corey Potter ripped a slap shot from the point that was kicked out by Kiprusoff, but Eberle was in front to collect the rebound and backhand it top shelf past the Finnish netminder.

Edmonton took control for good with a dominant second period in which it tagged Kiprusoff for four goals.

The Oilers began the offensive onslaught at 8:09 of the second frame when Hall gained the blue line with speed on the left wing and sent a pass to Hemsky, who easily tapped it in from in front to put Edmonton on top for good.

Belanger found the back of the net at 12:21 of the second frame when he went in a 2-on-1 with Ben Eager and slammed home Eager's rebound, and Gagner made it 4-1 just 30 seconds later when he rotated to the slot and got a perfect feed from Eberle behind the net before firing it past Kiprusoff.

Despite the comfortable lead, Edmonton would not let up, determined to crush their provincial rivals and end their long losing streak.

It was 5-1 after Smyth put it past Kiprusoff from in close off a great pass from Gagner, and Hall capped the dominant performance with a power-play goal with 2:31 to play when he slid it just over the goal line from the left of the net off a point shot from Ryan Whitney.

Game Notes

Calgary had won all four previous matchups entering play on Tuesday...Oilers head coach Tom Renney missed his fourth consecutive game due to a concussion suffered in practice...Dubnyk earned his first career win against the Flames...The Oilers converted 1-of-3 power play chances, while the Flames failed to score with their only man-advantage opportunity...Edmonton will host the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday, while the Flames will play the Phoenix Coyotes on Thursday.